How to Set Up Screen Time for Kids on iPhone

As a parent, you are more concerned about the security of your child than ever before. Whether it’s the omnipresence of explicit photos and videos or malicious websites with offensive content or shady apps and games with dubious records, your innocent child is surrounded by enormous threats. Couple these threats withsmartphone addictionand your role as a responsible parent becomes very critical. The good thing is Apple has built a robust parental control suite called “Screen Time” that you can use to shield your child against explicit content and even keep a tab on their activity with the desired control. So, if you are ready to get the most out of this parental control feature, let me show you how to set up Screen Time for kids on iPhone and iPad.

Set Up Screen Time for Your Child on iPhone and iPad (2022)

Set Up Screen Time for Your Child on iPhone and iPad (2022)

What is Screen Time for Kids and How It Works?

Introduced in iOS 12 (2018), Screen Time is designed to help you get detailed insights about device usage. With fully personalized weekly reports, it provides a better way to track progress and find out the areas that need immediate attention.

For enhanced control, Apple lets you create a separate Screen Time profile for your child on your iPhone and iPad. Besides, you can also name another family member a parent/guardian so that it’s more convenient to track the device usage of your child. Moreover, it can also play a vital role in keeping you and another guardian (like your spouse or teacher) on the same page.

As a guardian, you can create a custom schedule for time away from the screen and alsoset daily time limits for different app categoriessuch as entertainment, education, games, and more. It can go a long way in helping your child get rid of iPhone addiction.

Even better, Screen Time also allows you to implement a pretty solid content and privacy restriction to ward off obscene content. You can set up communication limits to ensure your child doesn’t communicate with strangers and even put on a blanket ban on nude photos and videos through the newly introduced Messages safety feature.

Make Sure You Have Created an Account for Your Child

First and foremost, make sure your child has an account. Note that this child account will be part of your family until the child is at least 13 years old.

  1. Launch theSettings appon your iPhone and tap onyour profile.

  2. Now, tapFamily Sharing.

  3. Next, chooseScreen Timeand then tapCreate an Account for a Child. After that, follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process.

Set Up and Customize Screen Time for Your Child on iPhone and iPad

  1. Open theSettings appon your iOS/iPadOS device and tapScreen Time.

  2. Now, tapTurn on Screen Timeto get started. On the next screen, you will get the basic information about Screen Time, how it lets you keep a track of device usage, and what you can do to enhance privacy as well as restrict app usage. Hit theContinueoption to proceed.

  3. At the bottom of the screen, tapThis is My Child’s iPhone/iPad.

  4. On the downtime screen,set a schedule for time away from the screen. Do note that it will require your permission to allow more screen time on your device. Depending on your needs, you can allow essential apps along with calls and messages to be accessible on the device.

Once you have customized the downtime, tapSet Downtimeto continue.

  1. Next, you can set daily time limits for app categoriesyou want to manage. Once a time limit has been reached, your permission will be needed to allow more time. TapShow All Categoriesto access all the categories including social, games, education, entertainment.

After you have selected the preferred categories, tapTime Amountand then set the time limit. After that, tapSet App Limit.

  1. Up next, customize content and privacy settings in Screen Time. For instance, you canblock explicit and mature contentin the App Store, iTunes, Music, and websites. What’s more, you can also make it mandatory to require your permission to make changes to privacy settings. Tap“Continue”to proceed to the next step.

  2. Now, you will be prompted tocreate a Screen Time passcodethat will be needed to allow for more time and make the changes to the Screen Time settings. So, create a Screen Time passcode and then enter yourApple ID/passwordso that you can reset/recover the Screen Time passcode. After that, tapOKat the top right to continue.

That’s done! You have successfully set up Screen Time for your child on your iOS or iPadOS device. If you ever wish to make changes to the settings, head intoSettings app -> Screen Time and then make the necessary changes.

Set Communication Limits for Your Child on iPhone and iPad

To prevent your child from communicating with strangers or unknown people, you canset up communication limits. It’s important to note that limits apply to Phone, FaceTime, Messages, and iCloud contacts. And thecommunication to known emergency numbersthat have been identified by your network provider will always be allowed.

  1. On your iPhone or iPad, open theSettings app -> Screen Time.

  2. Under theFamilysection, tap your child’s name and then selectCommunication Limits.

  3. Next, tapDuring Screen Timeandenter your Screen Time passcode.

Next up, you can choose to allow communication with –

From a security perspective, I would recommend you go with either contacts only or contacts & groups with at least one contact. After you have selected the preferred option, tap theback buttonat the top left corner of the screen.

Note:

  1. Next up, tapDuring Downtime -> enter your Screen Time passcodeand then choose to allow communication with onlyspecific contacts or contacts & groups with at least one contact. Once you have selected the desired option, tap theback buttonat the top left corner of the screen.

6.Finally, you can choose toallow/disallow contact editingandmanage your child’s contacts remotely. Once you have fine-tuned the communication limits, quit the setting.

Enable Kid’s Communication Safety Feature on iPhone and iPad

With iOS 15/iPadOS 15.2 or later, you can enable communication safety feature to protect your child from viewing and sharing photos that contain nudity in the Messages app. With the Messages safety feature enabled, the app keeps an eye on the type of photos that are sent/received.

If themessaging appever detects that a child receives or is trying to send obscene images, the app automatically blurs the photos before they are viewed on the child’s device. That’s not all, the app also provides better guidance and age-appropriate resources to help them make a safer choice. If need be, it even facilitates a more discreet way to contact a person they trust for advice.

Now, you must be wondering about the privacy aspect of the Communication Safety feature. Well, Apple has asserted that it does not have access to any of the photos in the Messages app. Moreover, the entire process is done on-device to figure out if an image has nudity. Notably, the messaging app keeps the much-needed end-to-end encryption intact throughout. So, you shouldn’t bother about privacy.

Note:Currently, the Communication Safety feature is available only in the U.S. Apple is likely to expand it to other regions over time.

  1. LaunchSettings appon your iPhone or iPad-> Screen Time.

  2. Now, scroll down andselect the childyou want to set up the safety of the message for. Then, tapCommunication Safety-> turn on the toggle next toCheck for Sensitive Photosand you are all set!

Customize Screen Time to Protect Your Child

Customize Screen Time to Protect Your Child

There you go! Once you have customized Screen Time for your child on your iOS device, you can keep a track of the device usage by heading intoSettings -> Screen Time -> See All Activity. Based on your needs, you can also make the required changes to app limits, downtime, content, and privacy restrictions.

If you want to further boost the safeguard for your kid, make the most of the Guided Access that lets you lock your kid inside an app and evendisable the touch screen,block shady websites,force Siri to stop using explicit language, andhide apps. Plus, if your child access laptops as well, you should start usingParental Control on Windows 10/11too. Well, let us know your thoughts about Screen Time and what makes it a noteworthy tool for parents. It would also be great to know the sort of improvements you want to see in it.

Rajesh Mishra

An old school bibliophile who turned a tech nerd out of obsession. When he is not digging into hacks and tracking down stories that are breaking the internet, you may find him reciting poems.

Add new comment

Name

Email ID

Δ

01

02

03

04

05